Middle Grade First Lines and First Paragraphs

MMGM

I'm always surfing the web for writing tips and techniques. I search for the rules of writing and advice from other authors. I have read that first lines or first paragraphs can stir your curiosity, create surprise, be humorous, have shock factor, state a simple statement of facts, and last, but not least, hook your reader into reading more.

Here are a few first lines and/or paragraphs from middle grade books:

Charlotte's Web - “Where’s Papa going with that ax?”

Holes -  “There is no lake at Camp Green Lake.”

A Wrinkle in Time -  “It was a dark and stormy night.”

A Series of Unfortunate Events -  “If you are interested in stories with happy endings, you would be better off reading some other book.”

The Hobbitt -  “In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.”

Wonder -  I know I'm not an ordinary ten-year-old kid.

 Rain Reign - I am Rose Howard and my first name has a homonym.

Navigating Early - The first time you see the ocean is supposed to be either exhilarating or terrifying. I wish I could say it was one of those for me. I just threw up, right there on the rocky shore.

Fever - I woke to the sound of a mosquito whining in my left ear and my mother screeching in the right.

The Ballad of Lucy Whipple - "Mama," I said, "that gold you claimed is lying in the fields around here must be hidden by all the lizards, dead leaves, and mule droppings, for I can't see a thing worth picking up and taking home."

A Year Down Yonder - Oh, didn't I feel sorry for myself when the Wabash Railroad's Blue Bird train steamed into Grandma's town. The sandwich was still crumbs in my throat because I didn't have the dime for a bottle of pop. They wanted a dime for pop on the train.

Everything on a Waffle - I live in Coal Harbour, British Columbia. I have never lived anyplace else. My name is Primrose Squarp. I am eleven years old. I have hair the color of carrots in an apricot glaze (recipe to follow), skin fair and clear where it isn't freckled, and eyes like summer storms.

Duck and Cover - I survived the long drive from Cleveland. Now if I could just survive the Russians, I'd be OK. Some people worried they were going to blow up the United States. Mom and I had come back to West Virginia to start over. How could we start over if the world was coming to an end? (Sorry, but I had to include the first paragraph of my book.)


Wishtree - It's hard to talk to trees. We're not big on chitchat.

As you can see from the examples, some books do it better than others.

Have you read any of these books? Which one is your favorite line? What are some of your favorite first lines or first paragraphs?

A little practice can go a long way. Write and write again until you get it right.  

Now go and create the perfect first line for your story.



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